The goal was to avoid the bad weather up north by fleeing to the warmth and sunshine of central Florida, but it appears Mother Nature had other ideas. Granted, a little rain is better than three feet of snow, but Thursday brought about more than just a little rain. It was a full on downpour for the majority of New York’s third day in training camp, but as they say, the show must go on! And it all started with New York’s first scrimmage of 2016.
- TICKETS: Red Bulls Home Opener vs. Toronto FC, Sunday March 6
Red Bulls down USF 3-1
New York came out on top in the battle of the Bulls, dispatching the local collegiate side from the University South Florida in a convincing 3-1 win on Thursday morning. The match was rather unconventionally split up into three, 30-minute periods, with head coach Jesse Marsch deploying three separate starting XI in each stanza.
Bradley Wright-Phillips opened the scoring for New York after a clever bit of play on the wing from Mike Grella (sound familiar?), leaving the Englishman with a simple tap in at the doorstep. The squad had USF pinned deep within their own half for the overwhelming majority of the period, but managed just the one goal.
The next 30 minutes saw the two sides fail to score, but there were plenty of chances created by the Red Bulls (more on that in a bit).
Finally, Marsch sent out a lineup comprised solely of trialists, new draftees, and homegrowns. Brandon Allen and Manolo Sanchez tallied to extend the New York lead to three before conceding a penalty kick goal to USF later in the match.
"It was good to get going," Marsch said after the match. "We haven't had as much time to concentrate on enough of the details because we were a little bit sidetracked by the weather back in New York. Overall, to come down here for the first day against a college team (USF) I thought the effort was good and the emphasis was there."
Duvall Returns
It’s been a long road back for Chris Duvall, but the defender finally found his way back to the starting XI on Thursday morning.
Way back in July of 2015, Duvall suffered a broken tibia during a U.S. Open Cup victory against the New York Cosmos, effectively ending his season. The recovery process saw him slowly work his way back, narrowly missing a return to first team action during the 2015 playoffs. And after months of waiting to get back on to the pitch, Duvall couldn’t help but share his excitement.
“It definitely familiar,” he said after the win. “It was really good to be out there. This is where I find joy. I was really happy to be out there with team and playing again.”
Veron Impresses
Since joining the Red Bulls in August of 2015, Gonzalo Veron has yet to get a real run of games. It’s a trend that has tended to recur time and again when it comes to mid-season acquisitions. Starting just two matches last season, fans were most accustomed to seeing Veron come off the bench to provide a late-game spark for the New York attack. But in his first preseason with the club, we’re already starting to see why he’s become the team’s youngest-ever DP.
Playing almost exclusively on the wing in 2015, Veron was deployed as the lone forward in the second period of New York’s 3-1 win over USF on Thursday morning, and the Argentine turned his fair share of heads. Veron’s pace proved a menace to the USF backline as his shifty movement had the defense scrambling. His most noteworthy movements, however, came in the aerial game.
Standing at just 5-foot-8, Veron hardly towers over the opposition. But his hops—man oh man his HOPS! On more than one occasion, Veron turned into a target striker of sorts as the Red Bulls began lofting balls into the box for him to nod home. The tact nearly paid off, if not for some stellar goalkeeping from USF throughout the match.
Just how Veron will be used in 2016 is still somewhat uncertain, but with his raw, physical ability, you can be sure we’ll be seeing plenty more of the 26-year-old this season.
Cooper Joins Camp
Preseason often brings with it a fair share of trialists hoping to make the cut, and 2016 is no exception.
Joining camp on Thursday afternoon was none other than one-time Red Bull Kenny Cooper. The striker tallied a career-high 18 goals in his lone season with the Red Bulls back in 2012, and is looking to re-join his former side.
A few familiar faces still remain from his previous stay with the club, including Dax McCarty, Luis Robles, Connor Lade, Ryan Meara and Lloyd Sam. Whether or not he will be reunited with his former teammates long-term remains to be seen.
